AKB48’s Minegishi Minami Takes Off Her Wig For The First Time, “My Parent’s Tears Were the Most Difficult To Bear”

Minegishi Minami, the 20 year old member of AKB48 who was at the centre of the “overnight stay and close-cropped hair scandal” in January, accepted a solo interview for women’s magazine Fujin Koron published by Chuo-Koron-Shinsham, appearing on the cover of the April 22 edition.

She attended shows as a trainee with her wig on, so the interview was her first public appearance without a wig. She said about her close-cropped hair, “I decided to do it on my own and haven’t regretted it at all”, although she apologised about her causing controversy, “I ruined the image of AKB48. It hurts me and I feel bad about it”.

She also said when she shaved her head, Takahashi Minami, a leader of the group had cried out all the time and “the hardest thing was that I actually made my parents cry”. She went home and slipped into bed but her mother also got in and shed tears.

Regarding her future, she told about a fresh start and resolution, “I would like to be a good daughter for my parents that I caused a lot of grief to. Being celebrated by many people and graduating from AKB48, that’s my goal for now”.

She showed her dedication to the group saying that she was “only able to live as a member of AKB48” and explained why she will stand for the group’s 5th general election June 8.

It wasn’t “hard to betray my fans”. Ah well that’s the best we can hope for.

てんま（ten…）さん:

She’s utterly a tragic heroine.

you*o_*i*（you…）さん:

Stop! Disgusting!
She only shaved her head to please herself!!!

tetenryuryu（tet…）さん:

Well, it’s only her parents’ disciplinary issue.

正義と真実の人（seg…）さん:

She was ranked down to a trainee but appeared on a cover? Lack of remorse surely?
The representative dishonour of Japan.

leo**0116（leo…）さん:

FUGLY

GGR105（ggr…）さん:

Ignoring fans eh? I’m more than convinced that fans are just money trees.

無頼人（ang…）さん:

Matters of anti fans or fans for other members aside, you should know that you DID hurt those who had believed in your words and actions and supported you since the case was disclosed.

ベン（ish…）さん:

Ah okay, tears from your few fans, that’s not what you feel bad for then?

閲覧ありがとうございます（ton…）さん:

She is still very much alive, way too dramatic…
She did it of her own volition, and now she’s making a joke of it, so we’re bound to wonder whether she really regrets what she has done.

黒木眼医者（kur…）さん:

With this action, it can hardly be said that she’s really feeling sorry for her previous behaviour.
It couldn’t be helped if it was taken as her self-advertisement.

kur*gu*an（kur…）さん:

Don’t really understand why gross-takus support this ugly shit.

勝ち犬の近吠え（max…）さん:

Whoa, you’d get more work if you caused a scandal.

motomy（mot…）さん:

Don’t even deal with this moron.

一義（www…）さん:

What? She took her responsibility and shaved her hair without being asked to eh?

ｈｉｗａｍａｔａｎｏｂｏｒｕ（rav…）さん:

Well, that’s not what her parents cried for – making her otaku who are her fans buy CDs through a fucking scam (for the record, she made them overly excited about meeting her when they were buying loads of CDs, but on the day she was ill w), and in the meantime, living it up at parties, having one-night stands with guys like it’s nothing (despite her parents that believing that she was staying out because of work) then ending up with the revelation about her being a slut — that must be exactly why she cried, isn’t it?

behind this cool macho demeanor that I have, I am a huge fan of AKB48. Cant wait for the general election *high school girl excitement scream*. Gambatte Minami….. Gambatte…… desu ne?

laowow

cute.I want her!

Pickle

Looks less like a grey alien now that her hair is growing back.

Zappa Frank

i don’t think she looks cute, her head seems huge.. like an alien.

A Gawd Dang Mongolian

Geez all this over a romp. Imagine if she did the sort of thing American celebrities get in trouble for, like having sex with multiple people…and recording it.

Raminess

I think it’s crazy how so many people feel “betrayed” that a grown adult woman was in a consensual relationship with a grown adult partner. FFS, it’s not like any of the fans ever even had the most remote chance of ever being with her. What business is it of theirs whether she’s in a relationship or not? I honestly don’t get it. Is she supposed to remain forever single and celibate until… until what, some new pop idol comes along? She has to get the permission of strangers whom she’s never met to go out and date?

This article really embodies the worst of Japan. The fact that a woman can’t have sex without invoking the tantrum of a horde of solipsist paraphiliacs is proof that technological advancement speaks nothing of a country’s moral maturity.

Nyanmar

It’s not just simply the fact that she had sex, she’s under contract as an idol not to do any of those kinds of things with men. When you make as much money as her and still willingly violate the contract you’re under, it’s not too surprising that people will show no sympathy, not to mention that their culture is very different than Western culture.

Everyone keeps on thinking that her basic human rights are being taken away or something, and that’s nonsense. She’s a Japanese idol, not a Western pop star.

pickawinner

So Japanese idols should have less rights than Western Pop stars? I don’t get your point. Japan’s culture may be different, but it’s still a democratic society where people should be treated as equally and fairly.

And yes, her human rights are being taken away… by her contract. You will argue that she signed the contract of her own volition, but I will argue that a young woman with little prospects in the entertainment industry would feel forced to sign the contract and that contracts restricting a adult woman’s rights shouldn’t be drawn up in the first place.

Nyanmar

Again, it comes down to differentiating cultures and what’s perceived as “right” and “wrong”. If this was so morally unacceptable, the whole idol (male and female) industry would’ve ceased to continue or would’ve seen major revisions to exclude such restrictions.

But as anyone can see, these restrictions are still in place, and it’s not just applied to females as many people are blindly assuming. Johnny’s idols (typically the young ones) aren’t allowed to see or have girlfriends, either. Also, she’s a member of AKB48, the largest female idol group. She’s wealthy. It’s to be expected that she follow company regulations to keep her job.

These restrictions are still a part of the idol industry because what the industry really sells is a particular image for its members. What use is the image it sells if its employees go off and behave completely opposite? Now you may argue that work and personal lives are separate, but this is once again a matter of clashing cultures. Agree to disagree.

Reply

” If this was so morally unacceptable, the whole idol (male and female) industry would’ve ceased to continue”

As if morally uncacceptable things always simply cease to exist.

Butsu

Might add, a normal Japanese star is probably free to do however they please. It’s the whole idol business that’s slightly fucked up. The rules and escpecially the fandom hasn’t changed since forever (for better or worse), and seeing since she signed a contract, I really doubt someone is forced into this. They can also “graduate” when they get tired of the idol life. That means that said person will stop being an idol. So it’s not like there’s not a way out of this.

I’m not saying it is right though, I also think they should be free to do whatever they want.

There is nothing about democracy that says someone’s rights can’t be taken away. Some constitutional republics have protective measures against that, but proper democracies are simply ruled by the majority. Not that Japan is a proper democracy, but neither does it have robust protective measures to prevent someone’s rights being taken away.

stu

ridiculous. as far as i know, japan is perverted and downgrade their women as sex toys instead of “women”.

i guess that’s what happens when you have a country full of control freak aspies.

aadfasds

or should i say, japaspies.

Eudaimonia

I perceive this kind of stuff as drama simmilar to big brother reality tv-shows.

The drama is part of the show.

Your Sexy Cousin Rex

Unfuckingbelievable I cant believe this fucking slut dared to show her face again what a whore I feel betrayed by this bitch

Eudaimonia

Seeing this picture i think that her saving her head was a good move, it surely made her look different (yet still cute) than other akb members.

wtfff

amazing. a singer have a friendly sexual relationship with her boyfriend and Japan’s totally disgusted. But Japanese porn stars are worship? wtf is wrong with them?

Волк- Одиночка

I know this article has been posted a very long time ago but since no one has said what I think is an important point, i want it to be said.

It’s not about whether she was genuinely sorry or not, or whether she agreed to the contract and violated the terms. In fact it is not about her at all, but the fact that fans think it’s normal and ok for any girl to be subjected to it is wrong. If Japanese fans can’t learn to respect that their idols may have personal lives, how are they treating their own significant others and the people around them? Are their fans learning that it’s ok to treat the object of their desires as just that? That they can own them and keep them pure just for their own mastubatory fantasies? And are girls who idolise this band learning that it’s also ok for men to treat them this way too?

And before anyone makes claims about western world views, I’m from Thailand. I may not be Japanese and may still have vastly different cultures but that’s not the point. Claiming that ‘this is a Japanese’ thing is also saying it’s ok for things to stay as they are just because we as outsiders have no right to judge. It’s not ok for values of other cultures to be imposed on another but the culture themselves need to learn to treat people within their own society better as well in their own way.